Pemberlittle (Complete)

[Heart Foam]

No, the house is not "Arid Ridge". It's Pemberlittle - like Mr. Darcy's Pemberly, only smaller.

Hi.

To get things off on the right foot, and to avoid disappointments later, this comes with the disclaimer that it won't read like other stories. I tend not to inject first person dialogue into the characters while I play them, and to do it here feels forced. Others do that to great effect, I just don't think I can. I'd much rather talk to the actual humans who read this, and not put up any fourth wall. This is a computer game, and I'm sharing my experience in playing it.

This comes about having posted a few pictures in "share your screenshots", and others may be interested in seeing the development of the house. I started this mostly because I like the challenge of starting with nothing, and gradually building up to something spectacular. It is, so far, an almost 100% legit legacy. I didn't feel like editing the town to get a 50x50 lot. The Landgraabs can stay. Besides, Affluista Mansion only serves to remind the Guthries what their target is: to have a more awesome house than that. So it's the a 30x40 Oasis Springs lot "Arid Ridge" - presumably ironically named because it's not arid at all. It's completely grassy and lush.

But it probably won't remain a 100% legit legacy. Because I didn't begin this on the correct lot, and with great suspicion that some Guthrie will decide not to take the traits or aspiration kindly generated by the magical internets, I'm not going to presume to call this a proper legacy. Obviously I haven't played through many of the careers or aspirations before, so this is an experiment and a learning curve. And I might just choose to pursue a given career and choose my own traits if the generator gives me something I've done before. Also, the thought of 10 generations is staggering. Maybe with encouragement I'll stick it out. The stories tend to build up and charm us regardless of the rule set.

And because I didn't take a Day 0 pic of Miss Guthrie standing in front of a blank lot, I introduce you to my founder thus. Flaunting her charms. Aww.


Really Miss Guthrie? I'm trying to portray you as some vaguely elegant lady. This makes that... difficult. It makes me laugh. Did Miss Bennet make Darcy laugh as she showed off her muscles? Probably not. A little effort please.

Conspiracy theorists have speculated* that Jane Austen cut that chapter out, but that it was written. But let us not be too critical of our heroine - she was feeling confident. But has no muscles. At all. Ever. She's an artist, and has never put on weight or worked out. (As an aside, I've noticed a previous chef sim gained weight - which is accurate enough - and I'm wondering if artists won't, in satirical nod to the 'starving artist' stereotype? If anyone can confirm or disprove that, it would be interesting.)

*They actually haven't. I made that up. They conspire about other stuff.

Behind Miss Guthrie is Pemberlittle. And considering how she started off, she has every reason to be confident. Miss Guthrie's full name is Hayley Guthrie. I leave it to the forums to give her a middle name. Those were the first random names that popped up. In fact, apart from picking traits and an aspiration, I changed absolutely nothing about the first sim presented to me in CAS. She has a chin that could... break stuff. It's quite pointy to see it in profile. Succession laws, which I hope to stick to, will be strict equality and strict traditional. My founder happened to be female, the heir needs to be male.

Miss Guthrie is an artist. Aspiration of Painter Extraordinaire was probably completed by the time this picture was taken. Legacy rules permit sims to use a young-again potion once in a sim's lifetime, and Miss Guthrie did so, and is still a young adult. She will not grow a cow plant. I have gently suggested that it would be Unrefined (though, looking at the picture above, my confidence in Miss Guthrie's good breeding wavers a little), but some daring family member might attempt it later. It will mostly depend on the whims of the housekeeper - me - who might want to try it out.

The next post will start to tell The Moste Excellent and Lamentable Tragedie of the House of Guthree at Pemberlittle.

1. On Life and Death in Pember(very)little
2. On the Inefficiencies of Mr Reaper
3. The Family
4. 13,947
5. The Marriage of Lady Bridgeport
6. On Many Heirs
7. The Legacy of Silly Hats
8. A Change to Mrs Hayley Guthrie's Circumstance

[Heart Foam]

Miss Guthrie didn't always have it so easy. I have a picture of the grounds on the evening of the first Monday.


With some digging and selling, and a promotion on her first day, Miss Guthrie could take the first steps to being more of a lady... by buying a shower. I hadn't really thought about what to do when the hygiene bar was empty, and I'm glad I didn't have to start invading people's houses just to take a shower. Hayley harvested a nearby onion plant, and planted all five onions. That it's all one type of plant doesn't matter, it's just to have a few plants to work on the gardening skill. There are also nearby blackberries and tulips which I plant as soon as I can.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that dynasty founders need heirs. Marrying into a fortune is out: everything must be earned, no money must be had through moving people in. My plan, I suppose, was always to have Miss Guthrie marry an elder. This is partly down to the mechanics of Sims 4, and is worthy of an explanation. In a previous household in which a sim was married and had twins, there were often times that the conflicting aspirations and job requirements of the various household members meant that Sim A needed to be at the library to read 8 books, but Sims B, C, and D has no reason at all to be there. And ordering the sims back home remotely to tend the garden or work on a skill doesn't seem to work, so what happens is that when the house is full advancement in career and aspiration goals inevitably slows down. While Sim A is at the library, it's a wasted day for everyone else. So my plan for the dynasty is to keep the household quite small. Miss Guthrie could have married a young man, but then she wouldn't race through her painting as quickly. I wanted a husband for her that would produce an heir, and be around long enough to help the heir through childhood and do some of the gardening and plumbing and cooking.

This picture is towards the end of the first week.

Miss Hayley Guthrie proposes marriage to Mr Harvey Shirley.

You'll notice an Improvement to the Estate. There is... a wall! In fact, a carefully measured out wall. In a sims 3 dynasty I tore down and rebuilt the house a few times. Fun, but stupid. Much better to have a plan as to the completed house from the start. Actually getting to the proposal was tricky. On the first Wednesday, after a stressful day at work, Hayley was instructed to get some confidence and set up a date with Harvey. Somehow I got a gold medal for that (as you see from the champagne bucket), but the passionate kissing didn't happen, and indeed almost all of Miss Guthrie's advancements were rejected by non-committal Harvey. Ouch. I nearly moved on to another man because of that trait. But, the date reward that gives off a flirty effect was super useful, as was Miss Guthrie being an artist - that's a flirty painting on the easel. And soon even Harvey was in the mood, and soon Hayley was eating for two. I don't have screenshots of that. And babies are not that interesting any more.

This shows the development of Pember(very)little.

Three walls to the room.

And then four:

Oh the joys of starting with nothing! So flat broke, there are no windows. But the walls are glorious double-volume. You don't need a screenshot of the outside, just build a 12x9 room and you'll have the look of the magnificent Estate exactly. In the corner you can see the son and heir of the legacy, Saul. That was fortunate. Until this, I had never had a son. In various households before this legacy, I've had 6 daughters. Those two rooms are what will eventually become the kitchen and dining room. (If you find the "share your screenshots" thread, there's a few pictures of Pemberlittle in a more advanced state, as well as awesome pictures from other simmers.) As you see, there's not a great deal more furnishings here than when Harvey deigned to accept Miss Guthrie. Most of their money was put into walls. And isn't it just the best thing ever that we can add foundations later? Building that in at the start, and the stairs, would have been a stretch.

I hadn't had a sim die yet in TS4. And I hadn't had Harvey very long: you see Saul is still a baby. This was Most Unfortunate. A single mom would have to do the cooking/ gardening / repairing as well as finding time to paint and help Saul with his childhood aspiration. On the plus side, it's less of a jail in this picture thanks to having some windows.


But at this particular moment, Pemberlittle was more aptly Bleak House.

[Heart Foam]

So part one naturally ends with Grimmy arriving upon the death of Harvey.

But I was aware that pleading for his life was an option, and with (the frankly unconcerned) Mrs Guthrie close by, she was at last persuaded away from her latest masterpiece to try to save her husband. She tells me her painting is for a collection called "Anthropological Inversions III" - the Roman numerals are only for effect. Mere pretention. Basically, she paints pictures of people and turns them upside down, which apparently makes it more profound.

Anyway, after some undignified begging, Grimmy did his sums, and decided that Harvey was allowed to continue living in an empty house. Lucky man. I'm not sure if a particular mood helps in pleading with Grim, but who could refuse Mrs Guthrie anyway?

Gotta wonder if Grim was just trying to make his quota for the month.

Next event of note was Grim's second visit. (I think Harvey had a heart attack after paying his wife's bills or something.) Saul had become a child, and using the trait generator he rolled Outgoing - one of his mom's traits - and the childhood aspiration of whiz kid. On paper, not a bad deal. But clearly, Harvey was on borrowed time, and you need an adult to read to a whiz kid. So that's a complication. And with very limited funds it was hard to see how the unadorned surrounds of Pemberlittle would give Saul the opportunity to hit his target. Being a genius and going for whiz kid is fine, but without that trait it was always going to be a struggle. So Saul, not quite ready to let go of his dad, runs through the Grounds of the Estate (you're welcome to conjure up images of box hedges, and terraces, and fountains, and idyllic benches to compensate for the drab reality of the place) and pleads with Grim...


...while sticking a leg straight through dad. Mr Reaper was pleased with his purchase of prime real estate on the moon in exchange for Harvey's life, and let Harvey live on. I suggested to Saul that Grimmy was probably going to find out that he had no right to sell the moon (obviously, because it's actually owned by the Landgraabs), and that he'd be back. Best make use of time with dad while he can, because obviously the game had decided that Harvey's time was up. But after some glitch that kept me from getting Harvey read to Saul, they finally got that sorted out at the park.



Hopefully dad will be proud of what Hayley and Saul achieve, because sadly, the very next screenshot I have is of Mr Reaper's third visit.


I didn't know what to do with Harvey's grave. I moved it to the garden, where it still is, and once Saul autonomously ran over to it and mourned and became sad. You'll see that since Saul became a child, I cut off a section of the kitchen so that the bathroom could be separate. I read about sims dying from embarrassment early on in some legacies, and didn't want to tempt Grim back.

Saul's life then became a desperate grind of trying to reach his Whiz Kid goals without actually being a genius. The house started to grow too. Saul needed to play a lot of chess but having the table in that room wasn't helping - he'd always have the inspired mood from mom's art, but not the focused mood he really needed. So chess had to happen in it's own room, with only focus décor. Not long after the main hall was built, the west wing was built too. It was never an option to spend the money upgrading the kitchen.


But a focus room was only half the battle. Mrs Guthrie spent most time painting and gardening, but another sim in the house - or at least a friend to visit regularly - would help a great deal in playing all that chess with Saul. I could take him to the park and play there, but then his mama (to be pronounced, perhaps as Miss Marianne Dashwood would say it) wouldn't be doing anything useful. So, one afternoon, after much painting a low social meter, Mrs Guthrie stepped outside for a chat to find her son a good friend, and possibly future wife. Mrs Guthrie is practical like that.


Meet Miss Lyric Waugh. It's the first picture I have of her - she's in white and purple with the silly hat. I'm really tempted to break the Legacy rules, and try give Miss Waugh quasi-immortality with a steady supply of potions of youth. Don't worry about the age gap with Saul - there can be no disparity in marriage like the unsuitability of mind and purpose. And it is only the Sims.

[Lisa46]

I'm really enjoying this! And don't worth your writing style is interesting.

[Heart Foam]

I'm really enjoying this! And don't worth your writing style is interesting.

Thanks. I have such fun building this house and it's sad to keep it to myself.

[Heart Foam]

It's not a large family. It's not a perfect family. And Lyric isn't even family. But I wanted to catch this up to where I am so I can get back to spraying for bugs and just sort of... staring at the dining room.

Master Saul Guthrie is now a teenager - and indistinguishable from gentlemen twice his age. As a child he fulfilled his Whiz Kid with hours to spare. And having done that, I was hoping for a life aspiration that was in keeping with that. The one gripe I have with the legacy system is that it took immense effort to get Saul to complete Whiz Kid, and yet there's no real reward for that. You could complete a child's aspiration and then roll an adult aspiration that is unrelated. On Pinstar's trait generator, Saul got Lazy and when he becomes an adult he gets Geek. This had to be done in advance to generate an aspiration. I got lucky I suppose with Renaissance Sim because it is a knowledge aspiration that makes good use of his Mentally Gifted reward. But I just got lucky. Renaissance Sim will give him a lot of variety as an adult, which is fine, but the Lazy trait I'm less excited about. A few careers need some levels in fitness and he's not a fan of that. At all.

Miss Lyric Waugh moved in. She's actually an adult, and only had 9 days before becoming an elder. Pinstar's rules allow one use of potion of youth, which was duly done at the last moment. And that's not a train smash. Saul will be a young adult soon enough, and there'd be more than enough time for the beautiful Lyric to provide an heiress. But I'd hate to lose Lyric. It turns out she is Materialistic, Childish, and a Genius. So in fact, she was the perfect sim to be playing chess with Saul when he was a child. Her aspiration is Nerd Brain (which goes so well with Saul's knowledge aspiration, and they get along brilliantly - always have), and maybe it's from jogging aimlessly around the neighborhood, but she had level 7 in fitness when she moved in. I started her in the Astronaut career, and in no time at all she had slimmed down. On the day she drank youth potion instead of becoming an elder, I gave her a Bella Goth makeover as a thanks. There's some serendipity to all this, because Hayley didn't pick out Lyric. She was chatting to many sims, and Lyric is simply the one who of her own accord came to visit the next day. Without her, Saul would not be Mentally Gifted. Period.

The founder, Mrs Hayley Guthrie, is 6 days away from becoming an adult at time of writing. (I have the idea to give the succeeding generations honorary titles. So Gen 3 will be a baroness, and so on up the aristocratic food chain. After all, they live in Pemberlittle. It's like Pemberly, only smaller.) Mrs Guthrie has long since completed her first aspiration, and then chose Bestselling Author as her next goal. She hasn't done a single thing towards that as the family doesn't have a computer yet. I'd have to buy a desk or something. The house is bite-the-back-of-your-hand beautiful, but always leaving the family on the cusp of bankruptcy. If they have more than 1000 simoleans in the bank, I'd be surprised. Let me check... ah! Only 187. That's... not a lot. And the bills are getting larger and larger. But I do have a painting (an H. Guthrie original - seriously) that the gallery would pay over 9k for.

Here follows a plethora of screenshots of the house and of the family. And especially of Miss Waugh.












It's hard to imagine it's the same house and the same sims. It's an exciting journey. I guess it's why reality makeover shows - be it houses or cars or people - are so popular. The transformation is the fun part. Incidentally, that wonderfully graceful dining room is the same large room from the very start - with the beds and painting paraphernalia. So, yes, eight $900 chairs have taken precedence over having a computer. 

[Heart Foam]

Exactly so: 13,947. That's what Hayley got for a recent work of large impressionism. The detail on the carrot was just lovely. You had to be there. The juxtaposition of order and chaos was exquisitely captured; at once a modern and yet unnervingly familiar commentary on the frailty of the human psyche.

Okay. Glad I got that out of my system. But leaving behind tongue-in-cheek comments on Hayley's painting, she is really good. It feels like probably half the views on this story are my own. It's a diary for me too of the family at Pemberlittle, and I really like seeing how far we've come so far. It's a slightly grander Pemberlittle too as the interior is now quite well appointed - as it should be when you can make thousands of simoleans for only a few sim hours of work. If I find I took decent screenshots, I'll give a short (it'll take, what, all of half a minute?) tour of the interior.

Hayley is just Hayley. I'll stop forcing Miss Guthrie on her, she wears it ill. It's not who she is. I just love the CAS portraits in the previous post. Hayley's opera gloves don't quite cover her past. She had those tattoos before coming to Oasis Springs. I'll have to ask about them one day. And I think we can trust Hayley to be open about that. She's not a highly-strung prima donna. You sense that while dressing up formally is always fun, that is not her natural habitat either, and when thus attired, doesn't move through the vaulted hallways of her home as comfortably as usual. The heir, Saul, we know most about. He was born and raised at Pemberlittle. But of course he has memories of when it was a shack, and will always be quite down-to-earth. The one who is literally not down to earth, but hopefully becoming promoted to Astronaut today is Miss Waugh. She remains something of an enigma. Behind those dark eyes you sense is a vast mind, and there undoubtedly is. Her superficially childish whims are perhaps little more than a way of keeping her mind occupied. Smart people are often like that. And of the household, Miss Waugh is most at home in a ball gown. You do wonder what her background is. If anyone knows, it would be Saul. They share everything.

Right now, Miss Waugh who was either adopted by the Guthries, or sought them out herself, or a combination of the two - depending on perspective - is just a family friend.

Some slices of life in the Guthrie house now:

First is Lyric going to space...

... which another sim can watch on a computer:

That's agreeable.

Something unusual for the family so far is venturing off the flat and featureless magnificently landscaped estate. For Lyric's nerdy aspiration she needs to read 8 books. At home, a sims doesn't stick with it and read a book through. Seen as Saul and Hayley had no urgent goals, Miss Waugh went to the library alone. The guy next to Lyric is Dakota Someone-or-other. Earlier he was feeling energized and promptly dropped to the floor to do push-ups in front of Lyric. I so wish I noticed soon enough to get a picture. After finishing the book she was reading, she did at least allow for an introduction. The kid in the background is in a world of his own it seems.

I'm not sure Dakota is Miss Waugh's type.

Anyway, what impressed me with Sims 4 animations was Lyric absent-mindedly playing with her hair.


Back at the ranch, Hayley's little garden of 1 blackberry, 3 onions, and 4 tulips is progressing well.

This is the moment when the onion plants evolved to perfect, and at which Hayley hit level 7. So now she can thankfully 'tend garden', and take and graft cuttings. Obviously Hayley has spent most of her time painting, but starting the garden on the second day of the game pays off. It doesn't have to be a big garden either, and she's had no gardening related traits. I'm going to graft and grow some perfect roses (flirty) and lilies (focus) for their respective bonuses, I won't maintain more than one of each, to be put in indoor pots in the appropriate rooms. Then the rest of the space will be used by perfect blackberry bushes. Bills are getting sky-high now. Hayley's paintings are bringing in a lot of money, but she is only the first generation. What follows might not have the same earning potential, so the perfect blackberry bushes will be quite welcome.

(As an aside, I grew a trash plant once to experiment, and they seem to produce fruit so often that a spliced trash / blackberry might out-produce a pure blackberry. Hayley will test the theory.)

And for his final day of high school, Saul views a confident painting... which he thinks is a treasure map.


Despite this, he's a straight A student, as he was in grade school. So he'll start at level 3 in all careers. So when he aged up he hit that objective of level 3 in 3 careers by standing in one place, and signing up and immediately quitting various jobs - taking the low-level rewards too. For a Renaissance sim, doing well in school beforehand is a massive time saver. Seen as he's a geek, the career he'll stick with for now is tech guru.

The question now becomes what to do with him and Lyric... and when.

[MarianT]

I've had fun reading this -- thanks! (I'm fond of Miss Austen, too.)

[KRae]

I'm enjoying this as well. Jane Austen has gotten me through some rough times (think sick in Mexico unable to leave room). That you Miss Austen.

[Heart Foam]

I'm enjoying this as well. Jane Austen has gotten me through some rough times (think sick in Mexico unable to leave room). That you Miss Austen.

Being unable to leave the room sounds... disagreeable. 

I've had fun reading this -- thanks! (I'm fond of Miss Austen, too.)

I'm glad. It's a little unnerving to see all these views and wonder what on earth people think. But whatever. I'm having fun. And I know I've been inspired by and taken away some design idea from reading other people's stories. I seem to have forgotten to include more of the interior. The only current picture of the lounge (call it a drawing room if you're feeling up to it) is in the evening with the only light coming from the fireplace, so it's too dark. It's not yet quite the house I want to build. The red brick was okay, but that was a quick fix. Now that I've got the funds, there's a minor remodeling going on. I hope it's good enough for materialistic Miss Waugh.

[KRae]

I go to Mexico twice a year so it wasn't a huge disappointment. Have you read any of the take-offs on the Austen books such as Pride and Prejudice and Zombies? Well, I'm enjoying your take on a story, and will comment from time to time just so you know I'm reading.

[arimau]

I’m impressed with your work into building and decorating. Yes, it’s unbelievable for me to look into this family, is that the same Sims? And yet as truth to be told, it’s still the same. It fun to see what others did with their game, I could learn one or two from you :p

[Heart Foam]

I go to Mexico twice a year so it wasn't a huge disappointment. Have you read any of the take-offs on the Austen books such as Pride and Prejudice and Zombies? Well, I'm enjoying your take on a story, and will comment from time to time just so you know I'm reading.

I haven't read Zombies, and have no great inclination to. Well, I read Death Comes to Pemberly. I thought the best part of that was the intro. It broke down a bit when new characters were introduced. I think it's a mistake to try and copy someone else's style. Jane was writing in her normal language, but writers today who try to mimic that... aren't. I read every Austen multiple times when I was 19-20ish, and yeah, I know some phrase like Mr Elton's "exactly so" have made it into my everyday speech. 

The frankly bad name of Pemberlittle (but bad in a cute and endearing way), is more representative of Hayley than me. I don't quite relate to Pride & Prejudice that way. (And my favourite Austen's novel is Emma.) So there's a difference between arty Hayley and me, the almost normal guy writing this. The house is Hayley's. It's her enchanted object, it's her green light at the end of the pier, and her name for the house reflects that magic. (I basically made that all up now. It sounds good, and I'll stick to it.)

It won't always be Pemberlittle. The boring truth is I couldn't think of another name when I started. And once I've lived with the house for a while, maybe something else will come to mind. I'd hate to give the impression I started this knowing what the story would be. I must be given leave to look back and see what was rubbish, and then write a cunning explanation for it.

That said, the story has begun to write itself. Because of certain events - some that have already happened, and some that are planned to be written about soon - I can see how a main thread will go through the various generations. And if I roll a Snob heir, they'll probably make changes to the name. It would only be fitting if it was a snob! So I have my plans, but of course it constantly adapts to what the game gives out. If I roll an insane heir...

[Heart Foam]

I’m impressed with your work into building and decorating. Yes, it’s unbelievable for me to look into this family, is that the same Sims? And yet as truth to be told, it’s still the same. It fun to see what others did with their game, I could learn one or two from you :p

You're way too kind. Thanks. I do appreciate it. I must say I see threads about building and remodeling and I only wish I had it in me to build something more intricate. This house here is a decorated box. Okay, some thought does go into having the right proportions and windows and so on. It really wouldn't look right without that exterior wall trimming.

Somehow I manage to not have enough space (not least because the dining room is 8x9 all by itself - but I'm not changing that for the world). It's only a 2 bedroom house. At some point I might expand to a 3rd story, but I don't know where the stairs would go. If I do add a top floor, it might well be with a flat roof because otherwise it'll look too tall. And I'll have to choose windows that are slightly smaller than those on lower floors. So maybe there is some thought. I wish there were a few more options for stone exterior walls.

When it comes to building castles and stuff, I'm amazed at what can be done. On the other hand, I don't think they're super-practical. In my mind, it must firstly function properly as a Sims 4 house. Space is luxury. The high walls are great for that. So I'd rather have square rooms, and then try make that look good. It's actually good that I'm sharing my progress, because if it weren't for that I wouldn't have decorated the entrance hall yet.



Some interior pics. If you compare these to an earlier post you can see how things fit together. It's not all rainbows and butterflies. One of the hallmarks of any house made by me is a charcoal grill... in the kitchen. Because it's just more efficient to have all the cooking in the same place. I don't take myself very seriously. So there's always bound to be something bit odd. Somewhere.

[Heart Foam]

Or to be precise, the marriage of Lady Lyric Charlotte Beatrice Waugh, 4th Marchioness of Bridgeport, 7th Countess Twinbrook-upon-Marsh.

And I thought "Miss Waugh" was too formal. Indeed no. Oh the things sims learn the day before the wedding. I'm told the marquisate is not to be considered as hereditary. Her father ceded the title to Lyric, cutting out his wife and two elder daughters. After the death of her mother, ending what can only be described as an unhappy marriage, her father married again and had a son. Lyric’s father is elderly, and upon his death the title will revert to the male line – to Lyric’s younger half-brother Donald. Who may or may not be Don Lothario.
 
The earldom – the title Countess Twinbrook – she holds in her own right, and can be inherited. Her husband unfortunately will get no courtesy title. But one feels that most children will choose not to use their title(s), unless they are snobs.
 
According to Sims Peerage Laws* (SPL - not to be confused with the Sims Premier League, which is football, and far more entertaining) any Legacy / Dynasty Heir, beginning with the 3rd generation of the Legacy / Dynasty Family, that completes 2 Aspirations and 2 Careers during the course of Natural Life can claim an additional Title of succeeding Importance (hereditary knight, baron, viscount, earl, marquess), provided they are lawfully begotten Heirs of the Body. And so on, and so forth, in due order, and with great ceremony.
 
*By which, I mean, according to me

It is Lyric’s goal, and has since become Saul’s goal (he finds this stuff fascinating in a geeky way), to reestablish the nobility of the earldom. (Hey, the game said she was materialistic...) And it’s mutually beneficial. Lyric had a title but no money or family, and the Guthries had the money and a large house but no pedigree. Lyric is a (mostly) lovely sim, and there’s a strong connection with Saul. And when they got flirty, their romantic bar shot up very quickly. So maybe it's not entirely mercenary. Whatever the case, they are to be married, and there is great activity at Pemberlittle.

There's a rather apt moment when blue blood Miss Waugh decides to be flirty - look at the speech bubble. Yep. That's our girl. You can almost hear her saying "I'm actually a countess" with her nose stuck in the air like that.



---------

The Wedding.

I hadn't done a proper Sims 4 wedding before, and I had no reason not to have one now. Lyric hadn't spent much time making friends, and so was able to invite a whole THREE guests. At least they'd have a lot of food. Mother of the Groom was unluckily the designated caterer - I didn't trust a hired chef to get through the cooking requirements of the day. But having had the wedding, maybe I needn't have worried. As caterer, Hayley was autonomously making cakes so maybe all that would have been fine. Since the wedding, the kitchen has finally been upgraded, so it's not quite as bad as in the photos here - at this point I hadn't yet turned off 'auto counters'.

In chronological order:



After the "you may kiss the bride" part, they seemed a bit unsure what to do next. Perk up Saul, you've got married life ahead of you.




Miss Tucker was taking pictures of the food and then sharing it. Too funny. Hayley finally got to leave the kitchen. The elder in purple is Eliza Pancakes, to give an idea of game progression.

And I know Lyric can be kinda shallow, but then unscripted moments like these would make any sim's digital heart melt. There she is, on her wedding day, reading a logic book. You'll see the group meal at the wedding was hot dogs. Yes, she's a Countess. But she's not a snob.


The evening wound down with Saul playing a concerto on the deck while others play cards. I'm glad Hayley is there relaxing with the guests. (If I recall, the bride was fixing a sink at the time.)


On a gameplay note, Lyric is pregnant and currently in her 2nd trimester. The heir this time needs to be female. I've been filling her up with pink cake, but I'm reading now that it probably won't make a difference. So never mind that. I didn't know how to do half-cabinets and round counter islands so I did some internet searching. This obviously led me to looking at some other houses, and the result of that inspiration is Pemberlittle has a new face. About a 2k simolean makeover. I was never quite happy the way the entrance steps just led on to grass, so that was changed and also a bit of paint. Let's call it Hayley's gift to the newlyweds.